Multimedia

Narratives

Site Information

Who's Who - Alexei Kuropatkin

Alexei Nikolaevich Kuropatkin
(1848-1925) was brought back from effective retirement in 1915 to serve as
an entirely unsuccessful field commander in the Russian army.

Sponsored Links

Born in the Pskov province
of Russia Kuropatkin's military career prior to World War One was extensive
and included service in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78. He served as
Russian Minister of War in 1898 and opposed the course of policy that
actually led to the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05, in which he served to
disastrous effect in command of troops in Manchuria (the events of which he
published in an unusually frank memoir in 1909).

Towards the close of 1915
Kuropatkin was recalled to active duty as a corps commander. In
February 1916 he was handed charge of the Northern Army Group in a surprise
appointment with consequent responsibility for the front north of Poland,
replacing the indecisive
Nikolai Ruzsky.

A timid and remarkably
cautious commander (much like his predecessor), Kuropatkin was an
advocate of outdated breakthrough tactics. Perhaps just as seriously
he was inclined to hoard resources that could have been placed to better use
elsewhere by Generals
Brusilov and Evert.

He was relieved of his
command in July 1916 and Ruzsky reinstated. Kuropatkin himself was
given the governorship of Turkestan in compensation.

With the February
Revolution of 1917 Kuropatkin was briefly arrested and sent to Petrograd but
subsequently permitted to retire to his home by the Provisional Government
where he sought employment as a clerk. He died in 1925.